From their website:
"The Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, Harrogate is a not to be missed event. Let’s examine the evidence: George Pelecanos, Val McDermid, Laura Lippman: a roll call of cool. Hang on for your life as many of the biggest authors in crime fiction gather for Europe’s most gripping crime writing festival.
The scene is set: July 23rd 2009: the Crown Hotel. The days are hot, the nights sultry. You’re at the hotel bar, pint of Theakstons in one hand, a novel by your favourite crime writer in t’other. And stood next to you - Simon Kernick, Mark Billingham, Lee Child… Witness some of the finest ‘criminal minds’ knocking heads in a series of debates, seminars and on-stage interviews. And don’t miss the notorious late night crime quiz and prestigious award ceremony for the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year."
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Showing posts with label crime. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crime. Show all posts
Sunday, 17 May 2009
Sunday, 10 May 2009
Crime: fact and fiction
I recently rediscovered the true crime magazines that I remember from my youth. The one I bought, Murder Most Foul, contains over a dozen crime reports, ranging from a couple of pages to a handful (I'm being precise, not!). If you are writing crime and mystery fiction, these articles may be offer ideas for stories: just steal the basic plot and develop your own narrative...
Crimefest 2009
And starting next week in Bristol: Crimefest 2009. The guests include Simon Brett and Michael Connelly. If you want to go, better get your skates on. Click here for details.
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Saturday, 2 May 2009
The Mystery Place
If you want to write about crime, what better place to start (on the web, anyrate) then at the Mystery Place. It is, in fact, the home of the Ellery Queen and the Alfred Hitchcock mystery magazines. But you'll also find submission guidelines and a readers' forum. Trouble with forums, is that you can spend too much time browsing them when you should be writing!
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Thursday, 26 March 2009
Investigating Crime with Margaret Murphy
The Crime Writers’ Workshop, held on Saturday 15 March in Hanley Library, was a great success. About a dozen want-to-be writers turned up (including someone from London) and were entertained by, and learned from, Margaret Murphy. Margaret is the author of several crime novels, including The Dispossed and Now You See Me – copies of these two were available for purchase. We also discovered that Margaret is due to take over the Chair of the Crime Writers Association and that she was a founder member of the Murder Squad. The workshop was very relaxed and friendly. It’s a cliché, I know, but it is difficult to imagine such a charming person behind a series of crime books.
The workshop began with a look at villains, how to make them appear more natural – more human – rather than as ciphers. The first exercise was to write a paragraph or two to introduce the villain, who showed elements of empathy, a character who was perhaps monstrous but not grotesque. A few brave souls volunteered to read out their efforts.
After lunch, Margaret gave a talk about CSIs – they used to be called SOCOs in the UK, but our American cousins influence all aspects of our culture, including crime detection. Actually, a Crime Scene Investigator makes more sense than a Scene of Crime Officer since those involved now include civilian scientists and not just policemen and women. The talk, with PowerPoint presentation, covered advances in DNA and fingerprint evidence. Fascinating.
We discussed the extended metaphor, and then the final exercise of the day was to write a piece based on the elements covered earlier in the workshop. Margaret provided two opening sentences. Unfortunately, time was running out and there was no opportunity for everyone to read out their pieces. Personally, I was surprised at how easily I found it to write in a crowded room. Of course, my piece was a tentative first draft and will require a lot of work, but it did provide an idea that I hope to use in the future.
This was a jolly good session, and more importantly, it was inspiring. To find out more about Margaret Murphy visit her website.
© Peter Coleborn
The workshop began with a look at villains, how to make them appear more natural – more human – rather than as ciphers. The first exercise was to write a paragraph or two to introduce the villain, who showed elements of empathy, a character who was perhaps monstrous but not grotesque. A few brave souls volunteered to read out their efforts.
After lunch, Margaret gave a talk about CSIs – they used to be called SOCOs in the UK, but our American cousins influence all aspects of our culture, including crime detection. Actually, a Crime Scene Investigator makes more sense than a Scene of Crime Officer since those involved now include civilian scientists and not just policemen and women. The talk, with PowerPoint presentation, covered advances in DNA and fingerprint evidence. Fascinating.
We discussed the extended metaphor, and then the final exercise of the day was to write a piece based on the elements covered earlier in the workshop. Margaret provided two opening sentences. Unfortunately, time was running out and there was no opportunity for everyone to read out their pieces. Personally, I was surprised at how easily I found it to write in a crowded room. Of course, my piece was a tentative first draft and will require a lot of work, but it did provide an idea that I hope to use in the future.
This was a jolly good session, and more importantly, it was inspiring. To find out more about Margaret Murphy visit her website.
© Peter Coleborn
Sunday, 8 March 2009
Crime Writers’ Day at Hanley Library
Crime Writers' Day with Margaret Murphy
The first half of the workshop will look at creating credible villains. Find out how some authors, e.g. Elmore Leonard and Thomas Harris, manage to do this. Writers will have the opportunity to try out their own skills to this end. Then in the second half, A Crime Scene Uncovered: insights into the real police work behind the fiction – from detectives and CSIs to computer hackers.
Margaret Murphy has written nine internationally acclaimed psychological thrillers, most recently, The Dispossessed and Now You See Me. She has been shortlisted for the First Blood Award and for the Crime Writers’ Association Dagger in the Library. Originally trained as an Environmental Biologist, she has been a biology teacher, dyslexia specialist, tutor for the open College of the Arts, Visiting Professor for the MA in Writing at LJMU and - in addition to tutoring on Arvon courses - she has presented workshops, lectures and readings for libraries, readers’ groups and professional associations across the UK.
Margaret is founder of Murder Squad, Vice Chair of the CWA, and has recently been appointed a Royal Literary Fund Fellow. Venue: City Central Library, Hanley
Date: Saturday 21 March 2009, 10am – 3.30pm. Cost: £7, to be paid on booking. Please make cheques payable to Stoke-on-Trent City Council. To book, telephone City Central Library, Hanley on (01782) 238455.
The first half of the workshop will look at creating credible villains. Find out how some authors, e.g. Elmore Leonard and Thomas Harris, manage to do this. Writers will have the opportunity to try out their own skills to this end. Then in the second half, A Crime Scene Uncovered: insights into the real police work behind the fiction – from detectives and CSIs to computer hackers.
Margaret Murphy has written nine internationally acclaimed psychological thrillers, most recently, The Dispossessed and Now You See Me. She has been shortlisted for the First Blood Award and for the Crime Writers’ Association Dagger in the Library. Originally trained as an Environmental Biologist, she has been a biology teacher, dyslexia specialist, tutor for the open College of the Arts, Visiting Professor for the MA in Writing at LJMU and - in addition to tutoring on Arvon courses - she has presented workshops, lectures and readings for libraries, readers’ groups and professional associations across the UK.
Margaret is founder of Murder Squad, Vice Chair of the CWA, and has recently been appointed a Royal Literary Fund Fellow. Venue: City Central Library, Hanley
Date: Saturday 21 March 2009, 10am – 3.30pm. Cost: £7, to be paid on booking. Please make cheques payable to Stoke-on-Trent City Council. To book, telephone City Central Library, Hanley on (01782) 238455.
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